Trinity County Sheriff May Have Been Mad Over Marijuana and Money Issues When He ‘Largely Abandoned’ His Job, Says SacBee

Trinity COunty Sheriff

Trinity County Sheriff Bruce Haney, second from right, talks with officers from multiple agencies that responded to a home invasion robbery on Fountain Ranch Road in Salyer. [Photo by Mark McKenna]

Today, the Sacramento Bee reports that Trinity County Sheriff Burce Haney has been largely absent from his job. Haney announced on Tuesday, as the Bee investigated his absence, that he would be retiring at the end of this month.

According to a comprehensive look at the situation by the Bee,

For months, Trinity County Sheriff Bruce Haney has been living nearly full time six hours away from the jurisdiction where he was elected in 2010, according to interviews and records obtained by The Bee. Haney for much of 2018 has frequently been at an Oregon home he purchased last year, according to a nearby resident in Oregon and Trinity county officials.

Despite what appears to be periods of long-term absences in Trinity, Haney has continued to collect his salary and benefits, according to records obtained by The Bee. Trinity County pay records show Haney has received gross pay of more than $9,000 a month this year.

With benefits and other pay, Haney earns about $160,096 annually…

The story, which should be read in full here, says

The issue came to a head a day before the June election when Haney’s office sent a press release saying deputies had executed a search warrant at the Trinity County Planning Department, which also regulates cannabis, after receiving information “officials in top county government were attempting to alter evidence in a criminal investigation.”

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Supervisors the problem
Guest
Supervisors the problem
5 years ago

They need to execute some warrants at the Humboldt planning and extortion department as well!!! And to take a federal look into some of our county supervisors and there familys who are extorting the masses for not being an accessory to federal crimes

Ezra
Guest
Ezra
5 years ago

Agreed. Bohn attends all planning commission meetings, how else would his son sell his product at a local dispensary. A little help, thanks to pops

Trolls Abound
Guest
Trolls Abound
5 years ago
Reply to  Ezra

At least 80% of “legal” weed is being sold out the back door on the black market. Everyone knows this, including Rex.

LostCoastEMP
Guest
LostCoastEMP
5 years ago
Reply to  Trolls Abound

In humboldt this year…. let’s shoot for about 95%.

RecallRexBohn
Guest
RecallRexBohn
5 years ago
Reply to  Ezra

Trevor is selling legally? That doesn’t sound plausible….

Ezra
Guest
Ezra
5 years ago
Reply to  RecallRexBohn

Should be a topic of discussion when it’s time for reelection. Meantime our complaints don’t seem to matter to him. Time to change things up on the board..

Curious
Guest
Curious
5 years ago
Reply to  Ezra

How can his son have a cannabis permit? Didn’t he kidnap someone a few years ago? Isn’t kidnapping a felony?

farce
Guest
farce
5 years ago
Reply to  Curious

Yeah all those charges disappeared. The bear mace because there was a ripoff over his weed from his grow….all those charges never entered or dropped.

Recall Estelle
Guest
Recall Estelle
5 years ago

Don’t say I didn’t warn you….

Dan F
Guest
Dan F
5 years ago
Reply to  Recall Estelle

I didn’t vote for the *itch!!!

Guest
Guest
Guest
5 years ago

Not unusual for California employees with pensions to move to a lower tax State when they retire and get their pensions. It does seem inappropriate.

Hey Kym, that was the point of this story, right?

Alcippe
Guest
Alcippe
5 years ago
Reply to  Guest

I don’t think anyone cares what they do when they retire. The problem lies in still holding a public office, receiving salary and benefits for supposedly doing all the tasks and maintaining the responsibilities of the job, all the while being largely absent. That’s dishonest at best.

299 Commuter
Guest
299 Commuter
5 years ago
Reply to  Guest

How is it inappropriate? People have a right to retire to any place they want although you should actually retire before you move away.

Trolls Abound
Guest
Trolls Abound
5 years ago
Reply to  299 Commuter

Would you pay an employee that never showed up for work? I can’t believe the idiocy of some of these comments, probably some of the same people that scream about wasted tax dollar spending…🙄

Pot vs kettle
Guest
Pot vs kettle
5 years ago
Reply to  Trolls Abound

Or, more likely, those outraged by his alleged behavior are just fine with wasted tax dollars if it goes to those they sympathize with.

Where is the chorus of outrage about negative comments and assumptions? The Bee article says he was reported to be on medical leave.

People seem to be eager to embrace accusations when they already hate what the authority the accused represents and very superior critical of other negative posters when they are defending people who they don’t know but certainly have been reported to have done something illegal. It’s not principle to be that way. It’s identification.

He might have accumulated leave he is using to absent while increasing his ultimate pension by adding more time. That is commonly done. Or he might be in fact RON- retired on duty- because that is commonly done too.

trump is a fucking pervert moron
Guest
trump is a fucking pervert moron
5 years ago
Reply to  Pot vs kettle

Commonly done or not, it is outrageous that the tax payers have to pay a person to not do a job. This is just a typical end-of-career popo tax money grab. Freaking robbery. Nobody in authority will cry foul because they are all hoping to do the same thing some day.

Either the job isn’t necessary, in which case it should be eliminated, OR put the guy go on disability and hire someone who can show up for work.

Sue
Guest
Sue
5 years ago
Reply to  Pot vs kettle

He never showed up for Carr fire! We have crime increasing because he’s not here! He’s been throwing tantrums ever since he got the job because he didn’t like the pay and could not wait for BOS process to increase it so he acted out like a spoiled brat targeting anyone else with larger pay in the county and left sheriffs office without leadership for almost a year

Flatgirl
Guest
Flatgirl
5 years ago
Reply to  Guest

He is NOT retired.
THAT is the point of the article.0

guest
Guest
guest
5 years ago
Reply to  Flatgirl

No. He’s reportedly on medical leave. Where’s your sympathy for the victim of illness?

Dan F
Guest
Dan F
5 years ago
Reply to  guest

If he is too ill to perform his elected duties, for an extended period of time, then he SHOULD RETIRE!!! Why pay someone for NOT doing their job????

guest
Guest
guest
5 years ago
Reply to  Dan F

Because that’s how the rules work for most State employees. You suggesting that firing someone who is ill is the way to go? It happens in private employment but not so much with the layers of protections in government work. People can have years of sick leave saved up. Write you legislators.

Sparkle Mahn
Guest
Sparkle Mahn
5 years ago
Reply to  Dan F

Not a matter of firing someone for being sick but for living out of the jurisdiction he was elected to serve and protect while not munching donuts. Simple mindedness won’t change that small, little fact.

Sue
Guest
Sue
5 years ago
Reply to  guest

He never showed up for Carr fire! We have crime increasing because he’s not here! He’s been throwing tantrums ever since he got the job because he didn’t like the pay and could not wait for BOS process to increase it so he acted out like a spoiled brat targeting anyone else with larger pay in the county and left sheriffs office without leadership for almost a year his office never proved any leave of absence just said to save face

Thatsmybike
Guest
Thatsmybike
5 years ago
Reply to  Guest

If he had officially resigned, that would have been fine, but he simply stopped going to work and moved out of state. Yet we still pay him what eight working families in trinity county make in a year! I say haul his sorry ass back to trinity county and lets spend $30k a year to keep him in jail, spend whats left on an honest sherriff that lives in the state of California and is willing to show up to work once in a while. At least sue for our money back, what a loser.

The Hermit of Grizzly Mountain
Guest
The Hermit of Grizzly Mountain
5 years ago
Reply to  Thatsmybike

If Haney abandoned his job then he should lose his pay and benefits and be required to pay back any salary disbursed since he went AWOL. Also, any applicable charges should be filed against him.

Dan F
Guest
Dan F
5 years ago
Reply to  Thatsmybike

Exactly the problem!!!!

guest
Guest
guest
5 years ago
Reply to  Dan F

Sick leave. Resigning ends accumulated time for calculating pensions. Better to stay on the hooks, increase the pension than to get paid out for sick leave (if they do that) and pay taxes on it.

Guest
Guest
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  Guest

If you are collecting a state pension and you live out of state you still have to pay Cal. State taxes.

Guest
Guest
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  Guest

I never hear that. Once your residence changes, I thought California could not tax that money at all. Do you have a reference on that?

Guest
Guest
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  Guest

No the State can’t tax State pensions if the recipient leaves the State. https://finance.zacks.com/california-pension-income-taxable-outside-california-8191.html

In fact, Nevada and Oregon are chock full of such tax refugees.

guest
Guest
guest
5 years ago
Reply to  Guest

https://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/the-state-worker/article20702106.html

Why public employees leave California. By the Sacramento Bee.

The idea that paying such subtantial pensions to public employees in California increases the tax burden sizably yet the same employees feel the need to shuck the tax burden they help to create when they retire. See something wrong here?

thick blue line of criminal corruption
Guest
thick blue line of criminal corruption
5 years ago

Not unusual for a CA tax payer paid official to be derelict of their duty but this guy is over the top. Could this be considered armed robbery and theft?

#getToWorkBitch

Momofmayhem
Guest
Momofmayhem
5 years ago

So embezzlement is ok? This guy is just gonna retire and get his pension one of which he DID NOT work for?! Take his pension! Pay back the state! We can’t afford this 💩.

guest
Guest
guest
5 years ago
Reply to  Momofmayhem

You would be even more outraged if you heard the amount of the pension.

guest
Guest
guest
5 years ago
Reply to  Momofmayhem

Besides, he’s allegedly on sick leave. That’s a benefit to which he is entitled. I don’t think well of it’s use in that way but it is not so uncommon that he should be the target of angry villagers with torches and pitchforks. Welcome to the world of State emploment.

Angela Robinson
Guest
Angela Robinson
5 years ago

And it’s not like he just moved to southern Oregon, not that far away, I suppose, from Trinity County, he’s living in Lebanon, which is near Salem, much closer to Portland than Medford, that’s for sure.

Can anyone remind me of who was Trinity County Sheriff in the 70’s? He was a piece of work, but I feel like my memory of him being named Love is the old subconscious being ironic.

Christen
Guest
Christen
5 years ago

I think it Was it Tom Kelly in the 70 for trinity co

Momof3Trinity
Guest
Momof3Trinity
5 years ago
Reply to  Christen

Is he the Sheriff that would load up the transients and drive them to the county line and drop them off?

Murphy's Merit
Guest
Murphy's Merit
3 years ago
Reply to  Christen

Tom Kelly 1963-1983

Murphy's Merit
Guest
Murphy's Merit
3 years ago

I’m curious what you mean by a piece of work and why people remembering Tom Kelly with fondness would be ironic….I heard he was a hard ass that did great things for that town. Maybe not always within the confines of the bureaucratic red tape, but always for the good of the people that elected him.

Barry
Guest
Barry
5 years ago

Watching a society so enamored by marijuana will do that to you.

Guest
Guest
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  Barry

He was probably jealous. Isn’t that what growers say when someone objects to illegal earnings?

Y Knot?
Guest
Y Knot?
5 years ago

Heard years back that his place was unpermitted and he went after a neighbor for those same issues.

TC needs Clint Eastwood to run and clean up the mess.

Ditching the justice advocate wife for red hair and chop sticks prolly had something to do with it.

I saw a poster comparing Alpert to a slug and it was funny.

guest
Guest
guest
5 years ago
Reply to  Y Knot?

Heck, he is just taking advantage of the same things that are common in government employment. Accumulated sick leave. Why attack him for that and give so many others a pass?

Maybe the problems have more to do with PERS than personal corruption. And California Legislators more than PERS.

Observant servant
Guest
Observant servant
5 years ago
Reply to  guest

Even in my private sector job I have to use up sick leave before retiring. And if I don’t use it within a calendar year it goes away. Rather than ranting on public sector jobs maybe take a look at military pay. It is awesome. And you don’t have to pay in to retirement. And if you want to live off base the housing allowance is incredible and additionally allows for a fuel allowance. If you want to buy that house? No money down. The odds are great you won’t be in the line of fire either! The Vietnam War caused 58,000 mortalities and in the 45 years since there have been 6,900 mortalities. Access military.com and read the articles about how military pay has managed to surpass civilian pay beyond all reason. You will be shocked.

shak
Guest
shak
5 years ago

Unless you’re based in Calif where the cost of living expenses far outweigh the paycheck.
Help needed & appreciated. https://www.stepsocal.org/

Sparkle Mahn
Guest
Sparkle Mahn
5 years ago
Reply to  guest

You’re absolutely right but it’s absolutely wrong for an elected official to play such games. Just shows his lack of integrity.

bearjew
Guest
bearjew
5 years ago
Reply to  Y Knot?

Clint Eastwood would be farming. Ever seen outlaw josey wales?

Supervisors the problem
Guest
Supervisors the problem
5 years ago

160,000 G’s a year and he’s in Oregon playing golf. Should’ve been a chump!!! Nnnnnnaaaaaaa no chump life for me!!!!!!

guest
Guest
guest
5 years ago

No. Public tolerance of wasteful spending is the reason. Your only angry that a person you already despise is getting money. You must be jealous.

Guest
Guest
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  guest

We have a President and a bunch of Republican legislators who have committed treason with Russia and probably Saudi Arabia. People conveniently forget that is how he got elected. Our President spends more time golfing at his Florida home and golf course than he does paying attention to government, except when he sees an opportunity to make a buck. So petty crime in the Hinterlands goes unnoticed. What does he have on the Supes so they don’t pay attention?

Guest
Guest
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  Guest

No on Measure K

Dude
Guest
Dude
5 years ago
Reply to  Guest

Our president has accomplished more than any other ever. Your living in a delusional world. You make no sense. Wake up ..Our president blah blah Whining crying. Going to be a ruff few years for ya😎lol

local observer
Guest
local observer
5 years ago
Reply to  Dude

he has accomplished more hate and division than any other. the rest of what you believe is from his mouth. I recommend studying what he actually does.

shak
Guest
shak
5 years ago
Reply to  local observer

Fake news and shills have, but not POTUS.

local observer
Guest
local observer
5 years ago
Reply to  shak

being a pond in trumps con game will suck in the end.

Sparkle Mahn
Guest
Sparkle Mahn
5 years ago
Reply to  Dude

You funny, Dude!

Jaekelopterus
Guest
Jaekelopterus
5 years ago
Reply to  Dude

He has accomplished many wonderful things for Russia. As for America, job growth is well under what it was under Obama, the national debt is still rising, the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty has been dismantled, taxes on the rich and hyper-rich have been slashed, the Department of Education is being horribly crippled by corporatist religious zealots AGAIN, Net Neutrality was eliminated… ECT…

He still hasn’t gotten those pesky Russian sanctions lifted. I bet you don’t like that.

Old Humboldt
Guest
Old Humboldt
5 years ago
Reply to  Dude

Some may like some of the things he’s done but no one really likes the man. At their core, they’re shocked but remain co-opted in either silent lockstep or acquiescence.

Trump is not your change agent as much as you’d like him to be. He is a con, a thug, and a bully. He lies incessantly. He only cares about himself. He has personally reprehensible qualities and is clearly amoral. He will be going down soon, hopefully before destroying all he touches. All the while he’ll be crying about being the real victim as usual and blaming others.

He is guilty of treason, corruption, and his own self-serving enrichment while in office, and it’s all gonna come out very soon. You’ll see.

OK, back to the story.

Jane's had it with Dick
Guest
Jane's had it with Dick
5 years ago

This article and the comments are all this area’s Magoo-like myopia comedy about their own world. Hate the Sheriff because he was -hmm… how to put it- pot grower unfriendly. So a flood of hateful remarks ensues. I’m not saying all undeserved but certainly ignorant. He’s supposedly on medical leave. For an illness. Never mentioned in the article above but very material. That is telling.

But say a drug addict crashes his car whole impaired and some cusses out drug addicts, a flurry of hate rebounds on them for their lack of empathy. The typical remarks here are not empathy at all but identification. Empathy apparently is confine to similarities, whether good or bad, but not when it not self serving. It is self indulgent and self serving, all this outrage. Not that this particular lack of empathy will ever be acknowledged.

Jane's had it with Dick
Guest
Jane's had it with Dick
5 years ago
Reply to  Kym Kemp

Really? Supervisor Mines, as the employer of Haney, has access to the medical records and leave records. He knows whether the County’s requirements for documenting sick leave have been done. He doesn’t like it but his not liking it does not mean it’s the least bit a violation of Haney’s work contract. If it was, he should be taking action to correct the situation. That is what is clear.

If you suspect there is malfeasance, then it needs investigation before allegations? Hmm… that made me think- where is your usual admonishment about innocent until proven guilty?

Jane's had it with Dick
Guest
Jane's had it with Dick
5 years ago
Reply to  Kym Kemp

The right to privacy?

Jane's had it with Dick
Guest
Jane's had it with Dick
5 years ago
Reply to  Kym Kemp

The right to privacy?

Supervisors the problem
Guest
Supervisors the problem
5 years ago

Once again guest I’m a very skilled individual who does perfectly well for myself,just don’t like seeing power pi&$ take advantage of hard working tax paying good folks.seems to be happening more and more these days.the corruption is spiraling out of control!!!

guest
Guest
guest
5 years ago

Won’t disagree with that. Saying something exists is not the same as approving it.

I don’t know what the story is and will be unlikely to ever know. Commenters here tend to spit hate without regard to facts. He might have been a paragon of virtue and there would be the same aspersions of corruption because commenters don’t like virtue. Or he could be the biggest crook in the county. It’s impossible to tell because of the general climate of irrationality.

Angela Robinson
Guest
Angela Robinson
5 years ago
Reply to  guest

Or…you could read the article in the SacBee. He didn’t resign until this all came to light. Maybe he meant to resign, perhaps his health was bad. But, again, he didn’t resign until it was publically pointed out he wasn’t even living in CA, let alone Trinity County.

KnowledgeDrop
Guest
KnowledgeDrop
5 years ago

he was investigating the county gov for being totally corrupt, and that probably is the back story on this whole debacle.

He is a lot more “pro-business” than the tee-totler code enforcement cronies… Too stupid to understand that they are behaving like Chi-Comms or ruskies

In communism there are the prols and the elite. Haney was not in the elite… he’s a prol. Respect him for not ruining lives with red tape crooks in the county gov.

Elect Jeremy BROWN!

shak
Guest
shak
5 years ago

He’s blatant, I gotta say that about him.
Unlike the rest of the sell outs that use our tax money to pretend they’re listening to the people but are instead spending our tax dollars to ‘hire’ foreigners to run the show.
Sustainable, Innovative, Crisis, Environmental., … are just a few of their favorite words to grab our money and give it to foreign govts for their total take over.
How many ‘forced retirements’ are we paying for? Dig, dig, dig!

For Sure
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  shak

Wasn’t being Blatant how trump became President? And kavanaugh became SC Justice? It seems that the blatantly rude, mean, disrespectful people are in the majority now, whether we like it or not. After decades of thoughtful, well-educated people, who took the overpopulation problem seriously- having only 1 or 2 children- or no children- they became the minority. Now, it feels like the majority are the ones who think global warming & overpopulation aren’t real, or something equivalent to that line of thought. Heaven help us all.

River Rat
Guest
River Rat
5 years ago

Hide and seek for $ 3079.00 A week. Wow!

Squeeler
Guest
Squeeler
5 years ago

Once again, if it’s news, it’s not in the Trinity Journal

Supervisors the problem
Guest
Supervisors the problem
5 years ago

We need a head sheriff here that investigates corrupt supervisors and planning department cu#$ that chortle supervisor ($#@$__. Not a sheriff that loves extortion and Constitutionly violating fines for environmental lies!!!! True some people are pigs and don’t care,but I think most of it is rip off bs

high rock
Guest
high rock
5 years ago

come on guys im sure this man was at his desk 40 hrs a wk he prob just crashed a buddies couch on weekdays

George
Guest
5 years ago

There is no mention above as to whether he has been showing up for work. If he is managing to work via couch surfing, no prob. But, from the gist of things above, that seems dubious….